I'm always giddy when I start a new Stephen Graham Jones novel. Yes, I said giddy. Everything about the worlds, circumstances, characters, and atmospheres he creates appeals to me ... In The Only Good Indians, Jones does that and more, and the more is quite special ... The Only Good Indians is a disturbing horror novel about revenge and sorrow that houses a narrative about identity and the price of breaking away from tradition at its core. And that identity, Native American, isn't monolithic here ... the horror is unlike anything you've read before. It goes from disturbing flashes of thing that may or may not be there to in-your-face explosions of gore and violence tinged with supernatural elements. Jones has a talent for creating unsettling atmospheres and images, but he also enjoys explicit violence ... Besides the creeping horror and gory poetry, The Only Good Indians does a lot in terms of illuminating Native American life from the inside, offering insights into how old traditions and modern living collide in contemporary life ... Jones is one of the best writers working today regardless of genre, and this gritty, heartbreaking novel might just be his best yet.
The anticipation and dread Jones’s stories provoke are amplified in his unique take on the slasher by associations with holidays such as Thanksgiving and Columbus Day, presented with their colonial entanglements so that the arrival of Columbus in 1492 is not seen as an occasion for historical celebration but 'a storm so bad it eats the world.' Yet, whatever form the monstrous takes in Jones’s work, he is a master at creating a storied presence that settles deep into our psyches ... transcends borders and temporal dimensions or, more appropriately, creates its own ... this is what distinguishes Jones’s writing — he eschews the facile answers, clichéd figures, and binary alignments that serve so often as fixed sites of victimry and tragedy. In the complex merging of space, place, and history that Jones activates in his fiction, it is clear that he wants readers to know something of these places and to make them become a part of us, as well ... delivers just the kind of narrative slow burn Jones has become known for, crafting a story whose setting, characters, and sensations evoke a sense of uncanny familiarity ... The storied world that makes up Jones’s haunted West is complex and multilayered, creating a verisimilitude woefully lacking in the romanticized and exotic fables of B-horror and pulp Westerns ... Jones reinforces the context of these details through an intricate layering of motives and historical effects to build a story that highlights the insidious impacts of colonialism. These repercussions are portrayed as both an external force and internalized hegemonic effect, serving as a source of horror and ghoulish tropes ... Sometimes when you read a story the scenes and images are presented so vividly it almost feels like they might fall from the page if the angle of the book tilts too high ... Jones’s unique take on the slasher succeeds in terrifying readers while giving heart to a narrative that will leave readers wondering where history ends and storytelling begins, and maybe even to question whether these narrative forms can ever be cleaved from one another, or should be.
Jones empowers his characters with an affinity for gallows humor that affords opportunities for social commentary as well as relief from the tension. Working in a close third-person narration with second-person seasoning when the Elk Head Woman wants a word, he proves a master of propulsion, his sentences short bursts of power that drive you from page to page. He is a writer who lives up to his acclaim, layering so much history and critique onto a monster movie framework ... The violence is sudden and shocking in terms of the range of victim and manner of their deaths. One of the great beauties of Jones’ craft is his ability to fully realize his characters no matter how briefly they appear on stage. He derives our empathy for his four main leads but especially makes us feel for the collateral deaths caused by their terrible mistake. After hundreds of hours devouring horror stories on the page and screen, you will believe you can safely label the victims and survivors and invest your emotions accordingly, but Jones is fearless about defying expectations. It doesn’t take long to accept that reality and the ride becomes wilder, chilling and sleep depriving once you do ... The project to treat indigenous Americans as subhuman is at the heart of a long series of choices that continue to this day. The Only Good Indians confronts that in its title, and Jones has filled his book with so much humanity that you hope it’s the kind of art that alters perceptions. It takes all kinds of narratives to change the world. Given the times, it makes perfect sense that one should be a horror story.
... quirky, entertaining, hair-raising ... Stephen Graham Jones shows why he’s a master of horror fiction that quietly sneaks up on you first and then relentlessly makes you run for your life, screaming for help ... a haunting, frightening revenge tale built from a mind-bending blend of many things ... Jones tells his new tale with a dark humor that at times melds into sudden shock ... the book’s unexpected resolution rolls out at a pace worthy of a high-dollar Hollywood action-thriller ... readers seeking off-beat, unnerving tales should consider checking out this inventive writing voice.
... unabashedly a slasher, and blood is plentiful, but a deeper layer runs through the material ... In one sense, it’s a paint-by-numbers horror novel, but Jones is far too nimble a writer to be pinned down by convention. The killings are shocking, yes, but they feel like exclamation points on larger ideas. They are not the entre, but the garnish upon it ... A terrifying whirlwind of blood with the brains to match, The Only Good Indians is sure to be among the most exciting novels this summer can scare up.
... [a] stark page-turner ... In keeping with the conventions of the revenge genre, each man will meet his fate in ingenious, mind-twisting ways ... Is Elk Head Woman’s destruction a ruthless warning against losing one’s way, against adopting the colonizer’s mind-set? Or is she simply evil incarnate, a manifestation of centuries of American carnage? Either way, if this weren’t a horror novel, some might call her tactics overkill ... One reason for the disconnect between crime and punishment is that Jones’ exceptional Native American characters, flawed and relatable, earn the reader’s trust and sympathy...The men’s banter, their affection for one another, their personal choices and troubled journeys frame their wrongdoings, big and small, as consequences of their complex lives on a reservation, not of their nature. And so the harrowing misfortunes that await them seem strangely undeserved ... If Jones is up to some form of re-appropriation, his scheme is overshadowed by the outsize gore, as well as the fact that only Lewis makes any effort to figure out what any of it means. He is the most reflective of the group, the most alert to the big picture, but he drops off halfway through. In the second half, Elk Head Woman weaves an intricate setup for Gabe and Cass that results in a bloody face-off at the sweat lodge, with hardly a moment for the characters to breathe, much less to ponder what’s happening and why ... Despite the conundrum that is Elk Head Woman, The Only Good Indians redeems itself with a climactic edge-of-your-seat battle both on and off the basketball court ... Given Jones’ focus on developing Denorah as a character, readers might be left wondering if there’s an overarching allegory in this death match between an elemental, hellbent force and one who, through strategy and adaptability, is determined to survive in this unlikely arena, the reservation. And yet the more one tries to tease out a meaning, the fuzzier the intention becomes ... strains to weave a horror story with robust character studies. In the end, there is enough in each strand to appeal to both the genre fan and the literary reader, even if neither is fully reconciled to the other.
Jones manages to take what is a worn-out old formula and imbues it with dark twists and an original take. And it’s just as gruesome as a slasher as well, only over when the original misdeed is made right. So if you’re into that kind of bloody, twisting story, you’ll devour this book as I did. He also manages to capture the feeling of otherness ... A lot of what really got me about the book was not just how the four men are taken out by the vengeful spirit, but everyone else that gets dragged into it ...That [is] why I think it’s so powerful that in the end, it’s not the four men who take down the spirit, but rather the next generation ... The dark undercurrent of the book only serve[s] to highlight just how well Jones can get in a reader’s head. You constantly wonder where the next attack will come from, what innocuous detail or background character will turn out to be more than they appear ... The only downside and this is for readers like me, is that Jones’ descriptions can be kind of hard to follow ... Jones works a lot in metaphor and descriptive language that can take a minute to process, so make sure you really take your time with it.
... combines literary horror, a slasher-revenge plot and a Native American reservation backdrop to great effect ... Aside from delivering the staples of the horror genre, Jones is excellent at depicting the anxiety of Native Americans in contemporary society – and the finale is stunning.
... [The Only Good Indian]'s unpredictability is the stuff of nightmares ... Jones has written an entire shelf or two of books across a boatload of genres. Only recently has he made a foray into the horror and dark fantasy waters. That makes his latest effort all the more remarkable. Jones, a Blackfeet indigenous American, presents a powerful work that threads bits and pieces of American Indian culture into a tapestry that is dark, frightening and ultimately uplifting, even as he gently toys with his storytelling structure to constantly surprise the reader ... Jones could have gratuitously slipped nuggets of Native culture into his narrative, but instead --- in a manner that is far more effective --- uses elements of Indian life on and off the reservation to support and guide his story, so readers think they know what is coming. More often than not, they will be wrong, particularly about the ending, not to mention the beginning and middle. In some ways this is the ultimate revenge tale, and it is quite difficult to pick a favorite character ... wonderfully frightening and compelling.
Jones, a Blackfeet writer who has published more than 20 books, 'likes werewolves and slashers,' according to his author bio, but he has also spent a lifetime interpreting Native American culture and mythology for contemporary readers. So he does here, exploring Native American deer and elk mythology and delving into the importance of elk ivory ... Jones writes in clear, sparkling prose. He’s simultaneously funny, irreverent and serious, particularly when he deploys stereotype as a literary device ... The Only Good Indians is splashed with the requisite amounts of blood and gore, but there’s much more to it than that.
An interesting, often unsettling tactic Jones sprinkles into the narrative is the use of point of view from the elk. Getting a story from the killer’s point of view is not in itself unique, but Jones proves his ability to creep his readers out, with sudden, seemingly out of nowhere second person narrative. Two characters will be conversing and one of them will notice a sudden movement in the distance before Jones quickly jumps to the elk-spirit’s demented thoughts – indeed, the elk is always around, watching its quarry ... The strongest parts of this story shine throughout the middle act, with surviving characters realizing something is not quite right around the Blackfeet Reservation, that something is out there with a bloody agenda, and the paranoia surrounding them all. The elk-spirit is not one to simply ambush; it's intricate in its revenge plot, often setting up its enemies to do damage to themselves, emotionally and physically ... The novel’s final act mostly consists of a classic slasher horror movie trope with an elongated chase scene, but is nonetheless thrilling ... perhaps Jones’ most personal novel, for he is an elk hunter himself and is stringent about not being wasteful regarding the lives he takes ... feels like a fantasy for those who desire swift justice with a violent bent; wrongdoers are punished without learning much, but the audience hears the message, loud and clear.
The Only Good Indians is a great horror novel ... a masterpiece ... The core plot is deceptively simple ... But nothing is simple here, including the nature of reality (and the reality of nature) ... the story is told from the viewpoints of each of the four fully portrayed main characters ... Voices change but the narrative flows naturally with no confusion. Supporting characters are just as well drawn ... The portrayal of the monster, Elk Woman, is also stunning. Her basis may be traditional, but she is a strikingly original beast: terrifying and unforgiving, yet poignant. The book is, at times, visceral (literally), but it is as instinctive and essential as it is harsh. Despite the blood and bleakness, The Only Good Indians is ultimately also about hope and the promise of the future.
Stephen Graham Jones pulls off an interesting feat in his new novel ... the reader is torn as to which faction—men or beast—is more deserving of empathy. The Only Good Indians unfolds at a slow and steady pace that offers ample opportunities for sharp commentary on history, past choices and the identity crises of a group of Native American men. It toys with impending doom, then slaps you in the face with violence.
This classic tale of revenge horror oscillates among eerie moments, violent action, and an overarching sense of dread ... there is an intensity, a breathless desperation that lurks just under the story's surface, giving the sense that everything that is about to happen, no matter how terrible, is inevitable and cannot be stopped. It is also a heartbreakingly beautiful story about hope and survival, grappling with themes of cultural identity, family, and traditions ... One of the most anticipated horror titles of 2020, Jones's latest does not disappoint. While fully entrenched within the genre, its well-developed cast, lyrical language, and heightened suspense will have broad appeal.
I would highly recommend reading this novel on name recognition alone. (If you don’t know who he is, get to know him here.) ... His publisher for Good Indians , Saga Press—an imprint of Simon and Schuster—seems to agree that walking into this book blind is the best way to go ... I personally have a fairly strong stomach, but there were several moments I wanted to throw the book aside. I didn’t, though. And that’s the power of Jones’s writing, his ability to keep you reading even when parts inside scream at you to stop. It’s ultimately worth sticking it through to the end, as Jones gives his readers an utterly poignant climax and denouement, one that bridges considerations of the 'Old Ways' and the ever-changing landscape of Indigenous people’s present and future.
I am not traditionally a horror genre enthusiast but I will read scary stories. The advance raves, however, for Stephen Graham Jones' latest novel The Only Good Indians got my attention. I was attracted to the fact that the author is of the Blackfeet Tribe. Since this tale is made up of Blackfeet characters, I knew it would be loaded with authenticity and the author does not disappoint ... The twists this novel takes will keep you hooked right up until the final ending you will not see coming. As if life today is not scary enough, perhaps diving deeply into Indian lore will take you away from your current fears. A great read is waiting for you here.
The setup for The Only Good Indians , the latest novel from prolific American novelist Stephen Graham Jones, couldn’t be better. Ten years after four friends commit an illegal elk hunt – slaughtering a dozen or so elk on a snowy night five days before Thanksgiving – someone or something comes back to take revenge ... one of the engines driving the motivation is the characters’ sense of themselves as Indians. They are always obsessively going through old stories and the intricacies of bygone traditions and wondering if that was how the Indians of old did it. Even as Gabe’s daughter Denorah aspires to get out of the reservation with a basketball scholarship, she still holds herself up against the model of the elders ... As suspenseful as the narrative goes, chugging from one setpiece to another, from improvised sweat lodges to makeshift basketball courts, The Only Good Indians can’t help stumbling over tropes. The killer ultimately turns into a silent stalker, remorseless but slow and dumb in the final scenes, as the final survivor seeks a safe place to hide. As in any slasher, the last survivor stumbles on a stash of bodies, and there’s more than one back-from-the-dead surprise savior.
... his latest novel steers the genre into some unexpected territory ... The Only Good Indians certainly brings the requisite genre shocks, but also functions as a serious look at modern Native American culture, both inside and outside the reservation. These themes make the book weightier than typical scare fare and, while some of the shifts in narrative focus feel abrupt, the overall work is very impactful. A solid tale about a community that hasn’t often received serious treatment in the horror genre.
Jones...spins a sharp, remarkable horror story out of a crisis of cultural identity ... Jones’s writing is raw, balancing on the knife-edge between dark humor and all-out gore as he forces his characters to reckon with their pasts, as well as their culture’s. This novel works both as a terrifying chiller and as biting commentary on the existential crisis of indigenous peoples adapting to a culture that is bent on eradicating theirs. Challenging and rewarding, this tale will thrill Jones’s fans and garner him plenty of new readers.
Jones gives Native folks some much-appreciated inside Crow jokes to go along with almost every Native kid’s school experience: 'Is this really Indian, D? Shouldn’t you do something to honor your heritage?' (129). Challenges like that can unwittingly escalate to unmooredness, to the cultural vertigo Jones deals with in showing the shame and awkwardness of disconnectedness, telling us 'Lewis never built the sweat he wanted, but if he stands in the upstairs shower long enough that it’s all steam, he can pretend, can’t he?' (105).The fear of ill-defined identity is as nerve-wracking as the inexorable approach of hulking monsters. The Only Good Indians examines the trauma of place, of leaving the reservation, and also how those who stayed behind are really never that far away ... The physical sense of immersion is equal to the mental depth provided by Jones. The deep cold of the northern plains and mountains is palpable, leaving us wanting a blanket against the chill as much as we want it to fight the terrors that waltz under the bluewhite iciness of black Montana nights. And when we think we couldn’t possible feel more alone under those clear hard stars, he switches to 2nd person narration for Elk Head Woman, leaving us utterly lost in the snow. This masterful melding of cultural specificity that translates to universal horror is the neocosmic approach of The Only Good Indians ... It marks, intended or not, the departure of Jones into the broader mainstream, with, for the field of Native literature, a guideline over Jones’s always-generous shoulder, bringing so many of us along with him while reassuring the good doctor, as if he needed it, that we’re with him, still connected, looking forward to the worlds he’s heading into.
The novel takes its name from what folklorist Wolfgang Mieder calls 'particularly hateful invective' directed at the United States' indigenous population, and that wry, dark humor informs the perspectives of the novel's protagonists — four young members of the Blackfoot tribe. The men are irrefutably aware of the terrifying statistics that characterize the lives of so many like them. Their inner monologues are rife with remembered and imagined arrests, friends' suicides, car crashes, and addiction. They know what society expects from them ... Still, for all the social commentary and supernatural fright deftly woven into The Only Good Indians , it's in the honest portrayal of his characters that Jones truly shines ... The young men feel real enough to reach out from the page and shake the reader. Jones' horror is rooted in humanity, in the author’s surfeit of heart. His characters are flawed and unerringly human, defined by or in denial of their guilt, which is why it hurts so much to read their stories ... The book's plot is a furious page-turner; its message, timely and potent. And The Only Good Indians works as well as a work of environmental horror, warning that to harm our home is to invite its revenge ... it is heartbreaking, exciting, and terrifying in equal measure. It's the clear frontrunner for my favorite book of the year — for its masterful execution, for its humanity and honesty, and because it has haunted me since I turned the last page.
The Only Good Indians was a blast, it started off with a break-neck frenetic vibe that drops the reader straight into the melting pot of America, where Jones is able to finely balance a social commentary (some of the bigoted views of a white America on those of the Native American demographic) with the unfolding and devastating drama that is unfolding before our very eyes – and the horror in this opening sequence, sets the pace for the whole book and of the nightmares to come. It’s dark, and gritty and bloody brilliant! ... it seemed to be written as a stream of consciousness, one that was harassed and harried, but once my mind settled down into the unfolding chaos, and being guided so deftly by Jones into the way of life for the Blackfeet Native American community and the life of our main protagonist (for this opening third of the book) Lewis. You can quite quickly see that the tools implemented and the feelings of being harassed and harried which are embedded in his stream of consciousness is a tool that is used to great effect at pulling the reader in ... The Only Good Indians main attraction for me, putting the horror aside for a moment was the characters and the character work that Jones delivers; and the depths of the inherent oppression this Blackfeet community faces, this hurt and pain and suffering for generations is sewn into the very fabric of this enchanting tale and the horrors of life, can’t be separated from the ongoing horrors of the narrative – they are one and of the same.
Jones...delivers a thought-provoking trip to the edge of your seat in this rural creature feature ... Horror’s genre conventions are more than satisfied, often in ways that surprise or subvert expectations; fans will grin when they come across clever nods and homages sprinkled throughout that never feel heavy-handed or too cute. While the minimalist prose propels the narrative, it also serves to establish an eerie tone of detachment that mirrors the characters’ own questions about what it means to live distinctly Native lives in today's world—a world that obscures the line between what is traditional and what is contemporary. Form and content strike a delicate balance in this work, allowing Jones to revel in his distinctive voice, which has always lingered, quiet and disturbing, in the stark backcountry of the Rez. Jones hits his stride with a smart story of social commentary—it’s scary good.
